The former head of the anti-corruption central office of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Denis Sugrobov will be released on parole. This decision was made on June 6 by the Skopinsky District Court of the Ryazan Region. Sugrobov filed a request for parole, having served half of the appointed term. In 2017, he was sentenced to 22 years in a strict regime colony for organizing a criminal community and about a dozen episodes of provocations of bribes against high-ranking officials and businessmen. Later this period was softened to 12 years. A positive decision on parole cannot be accidental, experts believe. If the court decision is not appealed, the ex-general will be released in 15 days.
“We fought corruption honestly and uncompromisingly”
The former head of the Main Directorate for Economic Security and Anti-Corruption (GUEBiPK) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia Denis Sugrobov, who is serving a sentence in a strict regime colony, can be released in half a month. The Skopinsky District Court of the Ryazan Region on June 6 granted his request for parole.
The terms of punishment for one of the most scandalous defendants in criminal cases of corruption among the highest echelon of the Ministry of Internal Affairs were already fading before our eyes. In 2017, the court of first instance sentenced Sugrobov to 22 years in prison. Then the Supreme Court reduced this period to 12 years. As a result, even of them, the ex-general will serve exactly half – six years.
As the head of the anti-corruption central office, Denis Sugrobov is known for his participation in the investigation of a number of high-profile crimes. In particular, the case of Oboronservis (multi-billion dollar embezzlement in structures associated with the Ministry of Defense in 2012) and embezzlement of budget funds during the construction of facilities for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.
But shortly after that, in February 2014, Sugrobov himself was detained after trying to provoke Igor Dyomin, deputy head of the FSB’s own security department, into a bribe.
Former head of the Main Directorate for Economic Security and Anti-Corruption of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, General Denis Sugrobov, suspected of involvement in malfeasance, before considering the investigation’s petition for arrest in the Basmanny Court, 2014
Former head of the Main Directorate for Economic Security and Anti-Corruption of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, General Denis Sugrobov, suspected of involvement in malfeasance, before considering the investigation’s petition for arrest in the Basmanny Court, 2014
Together with Sugrobov, eight of his subordinates were also under arrest. Six of them subsequently received long sentences. According to the position of the prosecution, all of them only portrayed the fight against corruption, but in fact they falsified the operational-search activities and brought the innocent to justice.
According to investigators, extortion of bribes was put on stream, and high-ranking officials and businessmen became targets. Sugrobov himself did not agree with such an assessment of his activities and did not admit his guilt.
During the investigation, Sugrobov’s lawyers asked the court to release him from custody on bail, first at 48 and then 103 million rubles. The guarantors of the high-ranking policeman were two dozen of his colleagues, among whom were the Minister of Internal Affairs of Kabardino-Balkaria Sergey Vasiliev and the chief policeman of the Ivanovo region Alexander Nikitin.
However, the court not only did not release Sugrobov to freedom, but also arrested his property – real estate in Moscow in the amount of 200 million rubles. For example, an apartment in one of the elite residential complexes of the capital, along with a personal mooring for a yacht, fell under arrest.
The case collected 200 volumes of materials, of which almost 50 were classified as “secret”.
On April 27, 2017, the ex-general received 22 years in a strict regime colony for creating a criminal community and about a dozen episodes of abuse of power. He was also stripped of the rank of lieutenant general.
Speaking in court with the last word, Sugrobov said that he and his employees “honestly, with dignity and uncompromisingly fought corruption.” And that he and his officers were the victims of a provocation that was born as a result of the confrontation between two “competing” departments – the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSB.
His lawyers asked for the sentence to be overturned in its entirety. Later, the Supreme Court partially heard their arguments and commuted Sugrobov’s sentence to 12 years in a strict regime.
The case was also remembered for a tragic episode – the suicide of 36-year-old deputy Sugrobov, Major General Boris Kolesnikov. He was also a suspect in the case and during one of the interrogations he jumped from the balcony of the building of the Investigative Committee.
The parole hearing was held behind closed doors. On the eve of the meeting, Izvestia asked lawyer Sugrobov about how the former head of the anti-corruption department feels, but he declined to comment.
condescending attitude
In general, the ex-general had a completely legal right to parole – he served half the term, believes Mikhail Pashkin, chairman of the Moscow Interregional Trade Union of the Police and the Russian Guard.
“Besides, he probably behaved well in the colony,” the expert suggested.
The fact that Denis Sugrobov would be treated with condescension became clear from the very beginning, after his initial term was almost halved, Kirill Kabanov, chairman of the National Anti-Corruption Committee, shared his view on the situation with Izvestia.
– I had no doubt that he would be released on parole. His exit is a kind of signal that old scores are forgotten. The story has been very controversial. You can’t tell who is right in it and who is to blame, everyone was to blame,” he said.
At the same time, Sugrobov’s exit cannot be called unprecedentedly fast – he still served a decent sentence, the expert noted. In addition, this story is by no means unique – after him, security officials became defendants in criminal cases of corruption, which eclipsed the “glory” of the ex-general in terms of bribes, Kirill Kabanov drew attention.
In his opinion, in a sense, Sugrobov really became a victim, but not of his innocence, but of an “intraspecific struggle”, in which there are no innocents. His problem was that he “overestimated his capabilities,” says Kirill Kabanov.
“You can’t be a nun in a drinking house. If you play your personal game, there is a risk that this game will be closed down, the head of the NAC summed up.
As it became known, during the time that Sugrobov was in the colony, he had no penalties and received 17 rewards. The entire session took 25 minutes. If the court decision is not challenged within 15 days, Denis Sugrobov will be released after this period.
At the same time, the court clarified that the former security official was not exempt from additional punishment related to the ban on holding certain positions.